OB chili: Many routes to tasty good -- and hot

The chili bubbled hot and spicy, the secret ingredients tightly held by some.

But if hundreds who attended the 31st annual Ocean Beach chili cook-off could peer into the 14 teams’ recipe books, they’d find eight peppers in one batch, Asian fowl in another, local craft beer in many and what one cook called “just the love” in hers.

For $1 per 2-oz. sample, they munched on a meaty batch or fought back the tears from a super-spicy brew.

Cori Krumbach, 30, of Pacific Beach came for the fifth straight year, looking for heat.

“I’m an avid chili cook,” she said. “The hotter the better.”

Assembled near the foot of Newport Avenue, some teams spent weeks and months perfecting their batches. Others threw it together Friday and served it up untested.

One of the most unusual presentations came from the OB Noodle House, which served up its “Asian fusion” concoction — Peking duck, star anise, black eyed peas and Makers Mark whiskey — from a toilet bowl. This first-time effort won second place for the People’s Choice award.

“We got together after work Thursday, pounded down a few beers, got wasted and starting doing it,” said team leader Steve Yeng, 28.

The Devil’s Ice Cream chili — a name chosen for its catchiness, not for any ice cream in sight — drew on more than 20 years’ experience. But the cooks this year featured something new: smoked chipotles, more pork and crushed instead of diced tomatoes. The team won second place from the judges. They also cooked 20 gallons, twice the minimum requirement, at a cost of $300.

“It’s for a good cause — it goes for the fireworks,” said team leader Tom Wilbur. “It’s all for the community.”

Mikey Akey, ﻿who helped found the chili cook-off in 1984, said the Independence Day fireworks cost about $29,000 to put on, and the chili cook-off contributes about a quarter of the total.

Another oddly-named entry was “Arem Shakem,” a made-up exclamation from a friend of team leader Erik Raaum. He and 10 other friends conduct their own chili contest and decided whoever came out on top would have to try their luck at the OB event.

The event draws not only amateurs and local restaurants but also businesses looking for publicity.

Chingón Hot Sauce Co. showed up for the second year, serving up Clyde Van Arsdall’s dad’s chili recipe from New Mexico, with the San Diego-made hot sauce on the side.

“It’s a good way to get the word out about our hot sauce,” Arsdall said.

Teresa Poole, 31, ﻿and her team from Ocean Beach Hotel spent $500 to make 20 gallons of chili at their booth, dubbed “Too Many Kooks in the Kitchen.” This year’s new ingredient was smoked pork shoulder, and next year’s recipe is already in discussion.

“We make tweaks here and there,” Poole said. “We play with the level of the spices.”

Among the nine judges on hand was City Councilwoman Lorie Zapf, ﻿whose redrawn district includes OB. She admits to be a “wimp” when it comes to chili and doesn’t like beans in hers. Still, she gamely tasted every entry, looking for consistency, no mushiness or watery, souplike thinness.